The Call: The King and the Princess
by GoEun08
Summary: Lisa Whittaker is a schoolmate of Susan and Lucy. During the Christmas vacation, Lisa received a wardrobe. What happens when she enters the mysterious wardrobe? would she survive life in narnia and find answers to her questions? Bad summary.Lol.EdmundXOC
1. The Start of Christmas Vacation

In England, snow started to fall like small pieces of cotton blanketing London in white. That afternoon a boarding school for girls somewhere in the city, the students were all busy packing their things up. They put their uniforms inside their trunks along with some other of their personal belongings—books, notebooks, pens, gifts from friends, etc. They fixed their beds and went out of their rooms with their trunks. The girls were all busy kissing and hugging friends before parting their ways. Christmas break had started and they'll be seeing each other by next year already. Susan and Lucy Pevensie attend this school and they're actually happy that school was finally over for the year. They'll be going back to Dr. Digory Kirke's home where they actually have a wonderful time exploring his big mansion. As the two sisters talked at the hallway with their trunks on hand, they saw a familiar girl walking ahead of them. Her name is Alyssa Whittaker and she is sixteen years old; a year younger than Susan and two years older than Lucy. She's like the most beautiful girl in the campus. She has long brown elegant wavy hair, has beautiful ocean blue eyes, and snow white skin. She's like a princess of modern times.

"Lisa!" Lucy called out merrily.

Alyssa, or most commonly known as Lisa, turned around at them with a beautiful smile. Lucy looked at her from head to toe amused as soon as they approached her.

"Wow, you look so wonderful, Lisa" she complimented.

Indeed she is. Being a daughter of a wealthy family, her parents spoiled her a lot with everything beautiful. Like now, she looked elegant in her clothes even if it looked simple. For her top, she was wearing a blue plunge neck blouse with striped patterns. For the bottom, a blue flower spring printed mid length skirt, a pair of black leggings underneath it, and a pair of gray boots. Lisa's cheeks turned rosy because of the compliment and grinned at her younger friend.

"Why thank you, Lucy. You don't look bad yourself" she said with a heavenly voice with the same British accent as Lucy's.

"Anyways, are you riding the train home to Hertfordshire?" Susan asked.

Lisa nodded, "Yes I am"

"Great, we can all go together then"

"That would be wonderful!"

And the three of them left the boarding school and walked out of the cool snow covered city. They headed straight to King's Cross station where the other Pevensie were waiting. As soon as they arrived at the train station, two young men—one blonde and one black haired— approached them.

"Where have you two been? We've been here for almost an hour" Peter said in annoyance, looking at his watch. "It's nearly four"

Susan rolled her eyes and looked at Lisa, "This is our older brother, Peter"

Lisa smiled and stretched out a hand, "Hi, I'm Alyssa Whittaker"

"N-nice to meet you" peter said, quite embarrassed on how he acted.

"And this one here is Edmund" Susan added.

"Hi Edmund" Lisa said nicely.

Edmund smiled a bit and looked away almost instantly.

The train arrived and the five of them went in. Lucky enough, there were vacant seats for all of them. They all sat quietly and watched other passengers go in. A few more seconds, the doors of the train closed and began to move.

"How are you going to spend Christmas, Lisa?" Susan asked. "Are you going to have a Christmas party at your big mansion?"

"What mansion?" Lisa asked.

"Oh come on, everyone's saying you're living in a mansion"

"It's not really a mansion"

But that's not entirely true. Lisa's home in Hertfordshire was as big as Digory Kirke's house. It has no neighbors and their house was in the middle of the field like a barn.

Lisa sighed and put her trunk between her legs so it wouldn't move around and answered Susan's previous question, "Well, I'll spend it alone"

"Really?" peter butted in, fixing the scarf around his neck.

"Yes, my parents are abroad for work and our helpers would be with their families"

"That's sad. Our parents are away too"

"Let's not talk about sad things" Lucy shared and grinned, "So Lisa, did you receive a lot of presents before leaving the boarding school?"

Their boarding school held an annual Christmas party before the start of vacation. They get to give each other gifts and partied all night without thinking about homework. Lisa thought for a moment.

"I didn't really receive a lot but, I got one that is very interesting" she said.

Susan looked intrigued, "What is it? A dress? A makeup?"

"A pair of shoes?" Lucy added.

"A skull"

The four Pevensie children looked at her surprised. They were more likely of thinking about the usual stuff that girls like.

"Is that some kind of joke?" Peter asked curiously.

Lisa looked at their expressions and laughed, "Of course not. You see, I'm into archaeology and one of my friends' fathers is an archaeologist. They sent me a historical skull of a human"

"Cool, I'm into archaeology myself" peter said enthusiastically.

"Really?" it's Lisa's turn to look excited.

She never met someone, aside from her father, who likes archaeology.

"Yeah, I'm thinking of taking it next year in college"

Then both peter and Lisa seemed to get along and understood a thing or two about archaeology. They talked about the mummies in Egypt, the dinosaurs' fossils, etc. leaving both Lucy and Susan dumbfounded. In the meanwhile, Edmund snorted. It' his first time to hear a girl to be interested with that kind of stuff.

"You're into archaeology?" Edmund scoffed. "But that doesn't suit a girl like you"

Lisa leaned forward to see Edmund beside peter and peered at him, "What kind of girl exactly am I?"

Edmund gulped, "You know…A girl! Shouldn't you be more interested with fashion like these two here?"

He said it as if it was a bad thing.

"Hey!" Susan and Lucy scowled.

Lisa folded her arms in annoyance, "Well, I beg to differ. I'm not the stereotype kind of girl"

Edmund just rolled his eyes and ended the discussion. Edmund doesn't really understand girls at all and he doesn't fancy any girl. Maybe it's because all he cared about were adventure and stuff.

A few minutes later, the train started to slower down to the next station. Lisa looked ahead and got all her things ready to go down on Hertfordshire station.

"Well, this is my stop" Lisa said with a smile.

The train stopped at Hertfordshire station and Lisa got up with a few more passengers departing. Lucy and Susan gave her a hug and peter shook hands with her for the last time.

"See you in the future" peter told her eagerly.

Lisa smiled, "Yeah, see you guys and take care"

She hauled her trunk out with her. She looked back at the train and waved at them as the train slowly moved on. Lisa left the platform and looked for her fetcher. As soon as she was on the station, an old man approached her wearing a black suit.

"How was your trip, Madam?" he asked nicely as he took Lisa's things.

Lisa smiled and walked with him towards the black car. "Splendid, Henry"

She sat on the back of the car and waited for Henry. As soon as he loaded the last luggage in the trunk, he got in and started to drive back home. Lisa drew a deep breath and watched the places they passed by. There were children running around the street playing with snow, parents on their way home with a bag of groceries or gifts, etc. But Lisa sighed. This Christmas, she wouldn't be experiencing any of those. Her parents were out on a business trip all the way in America leaving her all alone. As they arrived in the Whittaker's mansion, a group of personal maids were aligned in front of the house, waiting for her arrival. When the car parked, the maid opened the car door and everyone bowed when she went out.

"Welcome home, Madam" they all said.

Lisa smiled at them and headed straight inside of their house. It was very cold inside the house but still quite cozy. There were pictures hanging in every wall and the living room was full of antique furniture and décors. Lisa inherited her interest on archaeology through her father who was an antique collector and a soldier. Whenever he was assigned to different countries, he made sure that he would bring home something fascinating. She headed upstairs and inside her room. It's been awhile since she's been in her room and she was quite happy to see it. Her room was as big as a classroom and there's even a veranda overseeing the field. She opened her closet and decided to change into a more casual and simple clothing. She took a long striped gray and white knitted shirt, a pair of black jeans, blue sheep skin coat with hood, a pair of long blue fingerless gloves, and a pair of brown fur boots. She locked her door and changed then folded the clothes she wore neatly and placed it on top of her bed. After that, she fell back down on her bed.

She didn't really want to be home for Christmas because she knew how it would be—boring. During Christmas, all the servants leave to spend it with their family so Lisa would be alone during the holidays. She closed her eyes and someone suddenly knocked.

Lisa groaned, "Come in"

The butler, Henry, opened the door and was standing up straight. "Sorry to disturb you, Madam but, there's a delivery for you downstairs"

Lisa got up with a confused face, "A delivery?"

She went out and saw something big standing in the middle of the living room. It was a big brown square wardrobe, looking very elegant. She looked at it then to Henry.

"Who sent it?" she asked.

"There's a note" Henry said and handed her the small folded paper.

Lisa unfolded it and read the unrecognized cursive writing.

** Have a jolly Christmas! Please put this in your room, it could be quite helpful**

Lisa looked at the wardrobe again. Her mother couldn't be the one who sent it because it's not her type and she just told the helpers to bring it up to her room. It took five men to carry the whole wardrobe and carefully placed it inside Lisa's spacey room. They put it down just beside the veranda door and left the maids to put the clothes in the new wardrobe. Lisa, on the other hand, went in the kitchen to make herself a cup of hot choco when Henry appeared.

"I almost forgot your mother sent you a letter this morning" Henry said, handing the white envelope to Lisa.

Lisa put the cup of hot choco down and took the letter, "Thank you, Henry"

"Anyways, I'd be leaving by tonight, madam" he said.

Lisa smiled at him and leaned back on the table whilst putting the letter in her pocket, "Splendid, make sure to have fun"

"I will but, would you be okay being alone?"

"Don't worry, Henry. I can take care of myself"

After she finished her hot choco, Lisa went up back to her room. The maids just finished fixing her new wardrobe and left the room to pack their things for the night. Lisa lied down on her bed and began reading a poetry book she took from her desk. She was also fond of reading books since she didn't have a lot of friends. Well, she does have a lot from the high class but, she doesn't get along with them. All they talk about were new fashion trends, boys, and simply being classy. Lisa doesn't want any of those. She likes fun people like the Pevensie siblings to whom she can talk about almost anything interesting. She sometimes wished that she also has a sibling so her life wouldn't be this boring. All of a sudden, as she was busy reading the book, she heard loud chirpings of birds. It actually sounded like canaries. Lisa got up and went out of the veranda. It was very icy cold and she looked left, right, and up. There's no single bird in sight, just a blanket of snow covering the whole field. She thought that it was just her imagination. She went back inside her room and closed the door while shrugging off the snow on her head and shoulders. As she was about to lie down the bed, she heard the chirping again, getting louder. She turned to the brown wardrobe curiously. She carefully opened it and got startled when a yellow canary bird flew out and stood on the pole of her bed. She looked at it for a minute and became curious.

_How did it get in the wardrobe?_ She thought.

Not just that, there were more chirpings inside the wardrobe. She separated her hanged clothes like a curtain and looked for the trap birds. To her surprise, she felt a breeze inside. She went in and was more surprised that the inside of the wardrobe was big and long as if it was a hallway. She went further and could still hear the chirping birds.


	2. Narnia

Finally, Lisa was near the end of the wardrobe already and could see a light at the end. She walked towards it and squealed when she fell down on the ground. She fell on her front and felt pain all over her forearms. She looked around and was very speechless and at the same time absurd with what she was seeing. There were no snows in sight. It was like the start of spring as the trees were green, the flowers blooming, and the soil was so warm and dry. She also realized that her house was nowhere to be found.

She was in the middle of the woods.

She got up, turned around to the wardrobe and when she was about to go in, she bumped on the end. The end of the wardrobe was solid as if the portal was just a mere illusion. Lisa went out of the wardrobe again, nervous and breathing hard.

"Henry? Martha?" Lisa called out for her butler and maids in despair.

She looked back at the woods and was very confused. She didn't know where she was and she can't go back to her home. She decided to roam around to see some kind of way that would lead her back home but, all she saw are woods and a lamp post. She walked deep into the woods and came across a dam. She had never seen a dam before in reality but, she looked really amazed. She passed by the river by passing on top of the dam to get to the other side. It was also a good thing that Lisa was an adventurous and she had no problem getting herself soiled.

When she arrived at the other side, she found a hamlet with people. She thought that they could help her get out of this place. She walked towards the town and the townspeople looked at her weirdly. Lisa looked at them and noticed how medieval their clothes were. She tried approaching them but, they ran inside their houses.

_Tsk, they don't seem to be friendly_, she thought.

Then she saw a group of five masked soldiers, patrolling the place. Lisa thought that these soldiers could help her and called for their attention.

"Excuse me!" she called out.

The soldiers looked alarmed and on guard, seeing her. They have never seen someone like her because of her clothing.

"A narnian!" one of the soldiers declared, "Get her!"

Lisa quickly ran, not knowing why they were after her. She left the town and the soldiers ran after her and some were on their horses. She kept on running miles after miles for her dear life, not ever thinking that she'll be in this kind of situation. Small branches of trees slapped across her cheeks, causing it to have scratches. Her clothes were also getting worn out. At the end of the woods, she made it to a clearing and found another river that separated the land. Quickly looking from left to right, she failed to see any land bridge that connected to the other side. The soldiers were fast approaching and she had no other choice but to plunge into the icy looking river. She submerged from the icy river, gasping for air. Though the water was cold, she swam across the other side, forcing herself through the strong current.

She dragged herself out of the icy river and ran again towards the shuddering woods. Lisa had no idea how long and how far she's been running. Her legs were getting tired and she was shivering underneath her wet clothes. She was already losing hope that she would ever survive and find a way back home. While running, she tripped on a rock and fell on the ground flat and hard. She groaned but, she was already too weak to get up. Her eye sight was getting blurry and her head spinning. She felt sick and she had no more energy to move around.

Seconds later, she fainted.

As she lied down on the ground motionless and unconscious, footsteps could be heard approaching her. It wasn't only one person but, they were like two or three of them. They looked at the shivering unconscious girl.

"Do you think we should take her?" a soft voice asked.

"But we don't know where's she's from! She might be an enemy!" the other voice said quite aggressively.

"But we can't just leave her here alone"

"Let's take her" another voice said and carried her off.

There was a strong smell of oak tree. It smelled so strong that it made Lisa's head ache even more. She didn't like the strong smell of nature because it reminded her of the scented candles her aunt used to give her. Slowly, her eyes started to flutter open. She blinked a bit and saw only a blur.

Then she heard voices— male voices to be exact.

She rubbed her eyes and began to see a vivid view of what was in front of her. She saw the ceiling, made of brown oak wood. She looked around and saw mostly everything in the room made out of oak wood— the table, the chairs, and even the cups. She forced herself up and she shuddered a bit since she was still wearing the wet clothes. She looked at her aching right wrist and saw it was bandaged. She stood up and walked barefoot towards where the voices were coming from.

"How could you bring that girl here? She could be dangerous!"

"I'm sure she isn't. She looks scared and confused"

"Maybe some of your men tried to hunt her down"

"They are not my men"

Lisa was now on the room where the argument was happening. When she arrived, she couldn't believe the tricks her eyes were showing her. In the middle of the oaked living room, a badger, a mouse, and a human were talking.

A badger and a mouse—talking like humans.

They saw Lisa and before they could even speak, Lisa screamed in horror and ran out of the house that was literally a tree then to the dark woods. Though she was still weak from the running, she forced herself to get away and ran with her bare feet. She looked back and saw the guy running after her and calling after her. Unfortunately, the guy outran her and grabbed her by the arm. Lisa screamed and budged trying to get away from him, thinking that he was one of the soldiers she saw earlier.

"Let go of me! Help!" Lisa screamed at the top of her lungs and tried punching him.

The badger and the mouse caught up with them and they tried to calm and shush her down. The guy even covered her mouth with his hand.

"Shhh, be quiet. We won't hurt you" the good looking guy in a white tunic whispered.

But Lisa wouldn't listen and bit his hand hard. The guy looked like he was in pain but, controlled himself from crying out loud. In the middle of their fighting, they heard the hooves of horses approaching. The badger and the mouse hid behind a tree and the guy did the same, dragging Lisa with him. The hooves were coming closer and beneath the shadows, Lisa realized that they looked like the soldiers that were after her. They were holding torches to see through the blanket of darkness underneath a starless sky. They looked around and left when they found nothing. Lisa and the guy covering her mouth were breathing hard and were really nervous. As soon as the horsemen were gone, the guy looked down on Lisa.

"I'll uncover your mouth but, promise me you wouldn't scream again" the guy said in a whisper.

Lisa quickly nodded.

And so he let go of her. Lisa backed away from him and looked at them, confused.

"Where am I? Who are you?" Lisa asked, grabbing a small branch from the ground as defense.

The handsome guy looked at his animal friends and then to the girl, "I am Prince Caspian X"

"Prince? The only prince I know is named Philip"

Caspian looked at her confused, "I-I've never heard of him"

Then, Lisa's stomach grumbled loudly that they all heard it. Lisa felt embarrassed while Caspian just suppressed a smile.

"Well, let's go back inside my house and I've prepared some soup and bread for dinner. We'll also explain everything to you" the badger said and headed back to the oak tree with the mouse.

Caspian followed and he looked back at the speechless Lisa. She was still in a state of shock and couldn't register everything that was happening. For her, everything was just a hallucination or she was just having a very weird dream because of the poetries she have been reading.

"You could stay out here to freeze or you can join us" Caspian said with a smirk.

Lisa gulped and threw the branch on the ground and followed Caspian, sniffling, because of the cold night. When she went inside the oak tree, she saw the little badger pouring some hot soup on four bowls while the mouse was trying its best to slice off the bread. Caspian offered her a seat beside him and Lisa didn't hesitate. She watched patiently as the badger carried the bowls of soup on the table.

"Go on, eat up to get your strength back" the badger said.

Lisa spooned the soup and took a sip on it. It tasted so great, bursting with so many flavors of herbs and gave warmth inside of her body. Lisa hasn't tasted anything quite like it and she couldn't believe that a badger prepared it.

"Thank you" Lisa said softly and quite embarrassed on the way she reacted earlier.

The badger looked pleased, "You are most certainly welcome, dear. By the way, my name is trufflehunter. This one here is Reepicheep"

The little mouse put his spoon down and bowed at Lisa, "At your service"

"What would your name be?" trufflehunter asked Lisa.

"I-I'm Alyssa, Alyssa Whittaker. You can call me Lisa for short"

Caspian looked at her quite dazzled and smiled, "Would it be all right if I called you Alyssa? I think it's more beautiful"

The only one who called her that was her mother but, she didn't mind and just nodded. Lisa finished the soup and took a second round for she was really hungry. She never felt this hungry before and trufflehunter seemed to be happy that she liked the soup.

"So, why are the Telmarine soldiers after you?" trufflehunter asked.

Lisa thought about their first encounter in the town, "I was looking for help and when they saw me, they said I was a narnian. What's a narnian?"

"Goodness, you don't know what a narnian is?"

Lisa seemed to be the only who didn't know anything.

Reepicheep looked at her from over the table, "Narnians are like me and trufflehunter. Talking animals, minotaurs, centaurs, talking trees"

"There are minotaurs?" Lisa asked surprised.

She has heard of Minotaurs and the like only in mythology books but, never thought that they really exist. Well, she didn't think that animals could talk either but, here they are.

"Where exactly are you from?" Caspian asked again.

"I'm from England" she said, taking a sip of water.

The three looked confused for there is no kingdom called England in Narnia.

"Are Narnians evil?" Lisa suddenly asked, remembering the way those soldiers tried to capture her.

Reepicheep looked offended, "Do we look evil to you?"

Lisa gulped, "N-no"

"The telmarines want to get rid of Narnians" Caspian shared.

"Why?"

"Because my uncle, Miraz, wants to rule all of Narnia. He wants to take my throne and use it for evil"

"So you're a telmarine?"

Caspian looked at her and quickly defended himself, "I am but, I'm not as evil as them"

Lisa could already tell. He didn't seem to be aggressive as the others. He seemed to be more on the gentle side. Trufflehunter cleaned the table and went to his kitchen.

"The two of you have a good night sleep and we'll be leaving tomorrow" trufflehunter said from the kitchen.

"W-where are you going?" Lisa asked curiously, feeling nervous that she'd be left alone.

"_We_, including you, are going to see the other Narnians" Reepicheep smiled at her, "You don't expect us men to leave a lady on her own, especially that you don't know the place"

After cleaning up the dining area, Caspian and Lisa went back to trufflehunter's room and looked at the bed. It was only one and it could only fit one person.

"You can use it, I'll stay here on the floor" Caspian said and already lied down on the floor.

"A-are you sure?" Lisa asked nervously, "I mean, shouldn't a prince be the one lying on the bed?"

Caspian smiled while he flexed his right arm under his head, "I may be a prince but, I'm also a gentleman. I should prioritize a lady first"

Lisa smiled and took off her coat, hanged it on one post and lied down, curled up. She was still feeling cold and there were no towels anywhere. Well, badgers don't really use towels. Caspian noticed Lisa shivering and took his brown cape from the table and handed it to her.

"You can use it as a blanket" he insisted.

But Lisa was having second thoughts, "But, I'm all damp. It might get wet"

"It's all right"

And so Lisa wrapped the warm cape around herself and took a deep breath. She lied down, not able to sleep yet. She couldn't help but to think how worried their helpers would be if they found out she was missing. Lisa looked down at Caspian and noticed that he too was staring blankly and he realized that he has a bandage on his forehead.

"How did you get that?" Lisa asked, pointing at his injury.

Caspian held it and snickered, "I fell off my horse as I was running away from the telmarine soldiers"

Lisa leaned on her right arm and looked at him curiously, "You were running away from your own kind?"

Caspian nodded, "My uncle wants to kill me"

"But, that's just awful! Why would he do that?"

"His wife gave birth to a son, my cousin. He wants to kill me so his son would be the next king"

"But that's terrible; he'll kill his own relative just for power"

"That's how evil Miraz is"

Lisa sighed, "So, how are you taking your throne back?"

"Through the Narnians, if they'll take me as their king" Caspian said then smiled, "Well, you better sleep. You had a very tiring day. Good night"

"Good night"

Caspian already closed his eyes while Lisa faced the ceiling and sighed. She still couldn't believe that she was nowhere near England. She couldn't even believe that there was this world beneath a wardrobe. It made her more curious who sent the wardrobe to her. Lisa closed her eyes and tried to sleep already and hoped that she would wake up back in her room.


	3. Cair Paravel

On the very day that Lisa got into Narnia, the four Pevensie children were also drawn back to their kingdom where they were known as the Kings and Queens of Old. Unlike Lisa, the Pevensie children were quite happy to be in Narnia again, where they're the ones who make the rules. They ended up at the shore near the ruins of Cair Paravel, their castle. They have no idea how it happened and Edmund thought that it was catapulted. But, they don't know for what reason. They went down to the treasure room, where their things were still kept— their old clothes, weapons, and for Edmund his chess set.

"I'm glad that our things are still here" Lucy said, pulling off a red dress from her treasure chest.

Susan nodded and took her bow and arrow, "Yes, at least we still have these even if cair paravel is gone"

"Come on, let's change now" peter suggested.

They changed from their winter clothes into their narnian clothes and took the weapons they'll need while they're in Narnia. When they went up from the treasure room, they all agreed to stay for the night in the orchard just beside the ruins and made it as their base. Lucy and Susan looked around for food they could eat for dinner while Edmund and Peter were looking for materials they could use for the bonfire. It was just a good thing that Edmund had with him his flashlight and they could see in the dark. Peter started to pick up a few abandoned logs while Edmund looked for some traces of any Narnians.

"It's sad" peter suddenly said.

Edmund turned around to see the back of his brother, squatting down on the ground as he carried the pile of logs.

"That Cair Paravel is ruined?" Edmund asked.

"That's a second but, it's not that" peter said. "It's sad that I'll be attending College next year, which means that I wouldn't be able to see you guys around much more often"

Edmund snorted and ridiculed how his older brother could be sentimental at times.

"You'll get used to it, I'm sure" Edmund told him and took the small log in front of him.

"And that Lisa— she's quite an interesting girl. She knows a lot about archaeology. I wish I could talk to her more"

Edmund sneered at his brother, "Pfft, you're taking a fancy on her, aren't you?"

Peter chuckled and faced him, "Mind you, I do not. She's just like a sister to me who happens to have the same interest as I do. If you are to ask me, I think the two of you look good together"

"Shut up" Edmund said, sounding a bit disgusted and walked ahead to get back to the orchard.

Peter caught up with him and teased him more. "Oh come on now, Edmund. I really think you look cute together"

"Did you just call me cute?"

"I said you both look cute together"

"Well, I don't fancy her. She's weird for me. Who is in the right mind to accept a skull as a Christmas present?"

"She's into archaeology"

"But still, it's weird"

Lucy and Susan were now sitting on the orchard, putting the fruits they've got on a small clean handkerchief when they heard peter laughing. Edmund threw the logs on the ground and sat on one corner, annoyed. Susan looked at peter, who was starting to light a fire with a matchstick.

"What's wrong with him?" Susan asked.

Peter snickered, "Nothing, I was just teasing him about Lisa"

"Why, does he fancy her?"

"I do not!" Edmund defended angrily. "If you like her so much, peter, why don't you marry her?"

"Nah, I'm too old for her" peter said and grabbed an apple.

Lucy took a few raspberries and ate it.

"Lisa is a very nice girl, a friendly one I might add" Lucy said.

And Susan had to agree.

But Edmund just folded his arms and looked irritated, "So what? All the rich girls start up being nice and in the end they'll just make fun of you"

"Are you basing it from experience?" Susan asked suspiciously.

Edmund's cheeks flushed red and everyone gasped. The four of them never got the chance to bond and talk about this kinds of things when they were in England.

"Oh yeah! Now I remember" peter said with a big grin. "Edmund once fancied a girl from your school"

Lucy and Susan seemed to be intrigued with the news and asked peter who it was.

Peter thought for a moment about what the girl's name was, "I think it was some kind of Ellie or something"

"Ellie? As in Ellie Saunders from my year?" Susan asked surprised.

"Yeah, that's the one!" peter said happily.

Lucy tsked as she popped another raspberry into her mouth, "Tsk, that Ellie isn't a nice girl"

"Yeah, she's very bossy and she thinks of herself as the most beautiful girl in the school" Susan added.

"Why do you even like her?" Lucy asked Edmund.

"That was a long time, you don't have to know already" Edmund said.

So, Edmund did fancy a girl once and it is also the reason he doesn't want to like a girl anymore. Ellie was the typical high class kind of girl that Lisa doesn't like. She's arrogant, bossy, and thinks all the boys like her. Unfortunately, Edmund fell into her trap the way he fell into the hands of the white witch.

"But Lisa is different from her" Lucy spoke, watching the flame of the bonfire. "She likes to go on adventures"

"And she's into archaeology" peter added, which he was very happy about.

"She once told me that her dad would take her to different countries and explore some famous ruins" Susan shared.

Lucy agreed, "Oh yeah, she is very close to her dad. Her dad is also a soldier during the war, just like father"

"Yeah, do you think our fathers know each other?"

"Maybe"

Edmund didn't listen and just lied down to sleep. It's been a year and a half since they last saw their parents after the war broke out. Their mother writes to them telling them that she's all right but, they never hear any news about their father. Edmund is quite close to his dad and he sometimes wish that he could be in the army to help his dad. He closed his eyes and tried not to think about the worse.


	4. The Tale of Caspian and Alyssa

**New Chapter! Please do comment :) Much love**

As dawn broke, Caspian woke Lisa up. He gently shrugged her and Lisa opened her eyes then gasped when she saw Caspian. She clutched her chest and smiled at the young prince.

"I nearly forgot who you were" Lisa said, rubbing her sleepy eyes.

Caspian smiled while tying his sword on his belt, "Come on, we have to go now"

"This early? I don't even see light yet"

"It's quite far so we have to start moving now"

Lisa got up lazily and put on her cold coat and boots. Surprisingly, she had a wonderful sleep last night. It was as if she was back in her bedroom. They went out of the oak tree and found trufflehunter and reepicheep talking.

"Ah, good morning, Lisa" trufflehunter said nicely as soon as he saw her.

Lisa smiled, getting used to him already, and could still hear the crickets chirping in the woods, "Good morning"

"Did you have a good night sleep?"

"Very much"

"I'm glad to hear that but, can you walk? I mean, we'll be travelling in a far place"

Lisa nodded, "Yes, I'm pretty sure I can walk"

"And I could carry her if she ever gets tired" Caspian added, winking at her.

Lisa blushed with a smile, "Err, thanks"

And so they moved along. They walked through the woods again, went up and down mountains, and passed by a lot of rivers. Lisa was walking quietly behind and Caspian slowed his walking so they were just equal.

"Can you keep up?" he asked.

Lisa smiled at him and watched every step, "Yep, I'm fine. Just a bit sleepy still"

While Caspian was scratching his cheek, Lisa noticed her bandaged left hand. She suddenly remembered that it was the hand she bit last night when she first had physical contact with him.

"Oh my, is it because of me your hand is bandaged?" Lisa asked nervously.

Caspian looked at her then smirked at the sight of his injured hand, "Well, you have teeth as sharp as a lion's"

"I'm terribly sorry" she said sadly as she gently held his injured hand, "I never meant to hurt you. It's just that, I thought you were one of them"

"It's all right. It's understandable that you were shocked or scared to see yourself in a land you aren't familiar with. But, do you mind if I ask you a few things?"

Lisa was looking at the path she was walking on when she nodded, "Sure, about what exactly?"

"About you. I mean you're obviously not from this world—if that's even possible"

Lisa smirked, "Yes, I do think it's possible since I'm here. So, what do you want to know?"

"Well, tell me about your country"

"Well, England is very nice. It's actually Christmas there now"

"Christmas?"

"Uh, it's a holiday. You decorate houses with colorful lights and all sorts of wonderful things. You are also suppose to give gifts to loved ones during Christmas"

"That must be a very nice event"

"It is. Anyways, England is just like Narnia—except that we don't have talking animals, centaurs, or weird creatures. Each city is also filled with high buildings for hospitals, schools, and homes. It must be better if you get to see it for yourself"

"Oh, I do hope I could get to visit your country"

"And I would personally be the one to tour you around"

Caspian smiled with the idea, "Anyways, what do people do in England?"

"The things you also do here—the adults work to earn money and sustain the needs of their family, kids go to school or hang out on weekend markets"

"Do you work?"

I shook my head, "My mum wouldn't even allow me to do simple errands like buying food. So I'm just a student. My parents are the ones who work"

"What do your parents do?"

"Well, my mum runs a small business and I think my dad is the same as your dad"

"Really?"

"He's not really a king but actually a soldier of an army. He serves the country by fighting off the enemy"

"He's a hero then"

Lisa smiled and nodded proudly, "Yes, he is"

"Then you mentioned you're a student. What do you study about?"

"A lot of things; grammar, history, arithmetic, and more"

"Same goes with me" Caspian said excitedly. "I study too"

Lisa looked at him curiously, "What do you study about?"

Obviously it would be different here in Narnia and for a prince.

Caspian moved a big leaf in front of him and let Lisa pass, "Well, I also study history. My teacher teaches me astronomy and the history of Narnia. Then one of my Uncle's soldiers teaches me how to use a sword"

"Wonderful, I also want to learn how to use a sword" Lisa said eagerly.

Caspian looked amused, "Really? Most girls doesn't want to do anything about it"

"Well, I'm different"

"Maybe I can teach you how to use a sword some other time"

"I'd be very delighted to have a prince as my tutor"

Caspian smiled— flattered by the way Lisa addressed him.

"Can you tell me more about yourself? Clearly, I've never met a prince before" Lisa said.

"Well, what is there to tell? I'm just like everyone else"

Lisa snorted, "Except you live in a castle, have almost the whole country bowing at your feet, and ordering people around"

"Well, I don't really do those things but, my uncle does"

"Oh yeah, that Miraz guy. How did you cope up living with him? Surely you don't get along"

Caspian nodded with a smirk, "We don't talk. I spend almost the day with my teacher, Doctor Cornelius. He is like a father figure to me and he tells me wonderful stories about the Narnians"

"Where is he now?"

"He is in the Castle and I want to get him out of there"

"How would you do that?"

"I still haven't figured that out"

"Hmm, so aside from being with your teacher, do you mingle with other princes or princesses? I'm pretty sure a lot of princesses are hoping to marry you"

Caspian chuckled with what she said, "I am not sure about that part. I've met princesses but, I'm not interested with them"

"How come? Aren't they pretty?"

"They are but, they're just not the right woman for me"

In the middle of the woods was a clearing where trufflehunter and reepicheep stood along with the two humans. Lisa's heart was beating so fast, thinking about what they were waiting for. She has a sense of eagerness and fright. Caspian felt the same, holding the hilt of his sword just in case they get attacked. Behind the trees, figures started to appear approaching them. Lisa covered her mouth to prevent herself from screaming when she saw that they're surrounded by different weird looking creatures. There were creatures with the face of a human but, with the legs of a horse or a goat. There were also creatures with the body of a human but with the face of a bull. Lisa had the urge to faint again but, Caspian clutched her on the shoulder.

Caspian smiled and whispered, "Don't worry, you're not the only one who's surprised"

One of the centaurs moved forward and faced trufflehunter, "Glad to see you, trufflehunter and reepicheep"

Trufflehunter bowed down to the big mighty centaur, "Same goes to you, Glenstorm"

The centaur, glenstorm, moved his gaze towards the humans. Lisa was frightened, holding Caspian's hand tight and hiding behind him.

"Who are your companions?" he asked.

Reepicheep stepped forward and introduced them, "This is Caspian X and Lisa"

"A telmarine?" glenstorm assumed for only a telmarine bore the name Caspian.

The other Narnians murmured as soon as they heard that he was a telmarine. Some were frightened and some were mad.

"Trufflehunter, why do you bring a telmarine in our woods?" glenstorm asked calmly.

"Do not fear, he is on our side" trufflehunter said. "He actually needs our help"

"_Why would we help a telmarine?"_

"_Yeah, we should banish them from Narnia!"_

"_They are the enemy!"_

All the Narnians didn't want to believe that Caspian was a good guy but, he needed to prove them wrong. He put his sword down on the ground and stepped forward. There was silence, all eyes on the telmarine prince.

"I have to admit, telmarines didn't treat you right" Caspian started, "But, I am not like them and not all telmarines are bad. My uncle, Miraz, tried to kill me to get my throne and to rule Narnia. He is a savage beast and would do anything to eliminate all of us. But I wouldn't let that happen. That throne is mine and I have to take it back. With your help, we can take Miraz's army down"

"_What would it be in it for us?"_

Caspian looked at the Narnians with a smile, "We'll restore the old Narnia. You'll get to live freely again without hiding. I'll return the prosperous life you've lived during the reign of the Kings and Queens of Narnia."

Glenstorm looked at him for awhile. It would be a big risk if they helped a telmarine but, he could feel the sincerity of Caspian. He took out his sword and raised it up.

"For Narnia, I am at your command" glenstorm said and bowed.

The other centaurs raised their weapons and so did the other creatures. They bowed to their new leader. Caspian smiled, pleased that the Narnians trust him.

"Come, we shall talk about it back in Aslan's How" glenstorm said and leads the way.

Lisa quickly ran to Caspian's side, carrying his sword in excitement.

"That was great, Caspian!" Lisa said merrily.

She felt like she was living during the time when King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table existed.

Caspian blushed, "Really?"

"It really is! Did you prepare that speech?"

"No, it just came out"

"Well, it was great!"


	5. Aslan's How

The Narnians led the humans to the so called Aslan's how located in a wide field. They entered the How full of tunnels. Lisa was quite amazed by the structures and the interior of the How. She was pretty sure that her dad would love to see this place. One of the Minotaurs lit the torches around the How for some light to shed. The Narnians quietly rest and the others brought out food that could sustain everyone. Lisa, on the other hand, sat in one corner hugging herself to resist the cold. She felt really cold at the moment but, she couldn't do anything about it. She couldn't take her clothes off because she didn't have a spare. Caspian just finished talking to glenstorm when he found Lisa sitting on one corner. He quickly went to her side, looking very worried.

"Are you all right?" He asked, concerned.

Lisa showed a small smile and nodded, "Yes, just a little cold"

"Well, I'm not sure we can find you any dry clothes out here in the woods unless you want to-"

"No!" Lisa said, her face flushed red because she knew what Caspian was trying to say. "I'm fine"

She didn't want to take her clothes off.

"You can at least take off this coat" Caspian suggested, pointing at her still wet and heavy coat.

"Good idea" Lisa said, unbuttoning her coat and tossed it on the ground.

Lisa was about to wrap her arms around herself again when she looked at Caspian.

"Would it be okay if I hug your arm?" Lisa asked nervously.

Caspian's heart was beating fast when she asked that, "What?"

"Well, it's just that you look so hot…Warm! You look so warm to cuddle with, you know" Lisa said, kind of jittery.

"Oh, uh, sure. I guess it's all right"

Gently, Lisa wrapped her arms around Caspian's and leaned her head on his shoulder. She felt relieved, feeling the warmth of Caspian's body touching her skin.

"I hope it's not awkward for you" Lisa said, "I just love to cuddle with people"

Caspian was actually nervous and just nodded, "N-no, not at all"

They were both quiet, watching the Narnians go through with eating. They were quite perplexed with everything they're seeing; talking animals, weird creatures, and all sorts.

"Do you think you could defeat him?" Lisa asked, "Your uncle?"

Caspian sighed. He never thought about battling miraz or any of the telmarine soldiers. He was also pretty sure that he was no good in fighting.

"I don't know" Caspian said, feeling defeated. "I'm not even sure if I'm fit to be a king"

Lisa looked up to him and saw fear in his eyes. She sat up straight, cupping his chin like what a mom does to a kid with a problem.

"We're here to help you, okay?" Lisa assured.

"You will?"

"Well, yes. I have no idea how to get back home so, I probably should make myself useful"

Caspian held Lisa's hands tight and smiled at her, "I promise that I'll try my best to help you get back to your country"

"Really?" then Lisa hugged Caspian tight, "Oh, thank you so much Caspian!"

Caspian felt butterflies in his stomach. No woman has ever hugged him before and it felt good. She even smelled of lavender. Caspian has always felt weird around Lisa. He has never met a woman as beautiful as her and quite adventurous too. Lisa was humorous too in her own way. Certainly, the young prince has fallen in love with the stranger. Although Lisa was only sixteen and Caspian was a year older than Peter, he didn't seem to care.

He wanted her.

Lisa let go of him and smiled, "Do you want to explore the woods?"

"What, now?" Caspian asked amused.

Lisa nodded, "Well, we both are intrigued by these creatures and place, don't deny it"

"Yes, I am intrigued"

"Then come on, we might even find something useful for the battle!" Lisa said and pulled Caspian up.

Caspian just smirked and followed her out with his sword on his waist again. As they were about to leave, a Minotaur appeared in front of them.

"I am Tavros and I am said to look after you two" he said with a deep scary voice.

Lisa didn't like his presence, scared of how he looked like really. But, Caspian nodded and forced a smile on his handsome face.

"Well then, join us as we explore the woods" he said and walked with Lisa.

As they walked towards the woods, Lisa placed her hands inside her pants back pockets. Then in the right pocket, she felt something inside. She pulled it out and saw the damp letter her mother sent her. She quickly opened it and unfolded the wet paper. Fortunately, the letters weren't smudged yet. And so as she walked, she read the letter of her mum, hearing her voice inside of her head.

_My Dear Alyssa,_

_It's almost Christmas time. By the time you receive this, I'm pretty sure that you're back home. I couldn't imagine how lonely you are._

_It would be very sad if you're alone there and I'm thinking if you should go here in America to spend the holidays with us._

_I want us to be complete here, in one way or another. Reply to me as soon as you get this and tell me whether you're coming or not. Until then, I hope you're having a wonderful day! I love you with all my heart, Alyssa._

_ Sincerely,_

_ Mum_


	6. The Encounter

**Author's note: Hey, thanks for reading my story There might be times that it would take me a long time to upload because won't let me login =)) Anyways, please do comment. Good or bad is appreciated. It helps me see what I lack or something. Adieu **

This wonderful morning, just west from Aslan's how, the Pevensie children left the ruins of Cair Paravel to look for some Narnians. It was quite weird that they haven't encountered a narnian yet by the time they arrived. For them, Narnia changed. The trees used to sway, the birds fluttered around the blue sky, but now, everything was still and quiet. While they were walking just near the river rush, they found a small boat with two soldiers dumping a living dwarf into the water. Susan tried to take them down with her bow and arrow while peter jumped into the river to rescue the little red headed dwarf. The two soldiers were defeated and Edmund hauled the boat towards the shore. Lucy and Susan ran towards peter with the small man. He took off the rope binding the dwarf's hands together. The dwarf quickly moved away from them, pulling down the rope around his mouth, spitting out all the water that went inside his mouth.

"Are you all right?" Lucy asked, making sure that he's all right.

The dwarf looked at her in annoyance, "Do I look like I'm okay?"

"Geez, you could've at least say thank you" Susan said snottily.

Peter, who was squeezing the end of his tunic, looked at the dwarf. "Why did those soldiers tried to kill you"

"They're telmarines, what do you expect from them?"

"Telmarines, I've never heard of such humans living in Narnia" Edmund shared and his siblings agreed.

The dwarf looked at them, "Seriously, where have you been? The telmarines have invaded Narnia for many years now after the golden age of Narnia"

"That's about the time we ruled Narnia" Lucy said.

The dwarf looked at them again curiously. He looked at them one by one and the weapons they're using. All of a sudden it dawned on him about the identity of these four mysterious children. He scoffed and looked at them, displeased.

"You guys are them? The Kings and Queens of Old?" he said, quite displeased.

Peter folded his arms and looked proud, "Why, do you have a problem with it?"

"Oh no, I was just expecting you to be big and mighty"

"Well, for you to know, we're mighty enough in this state"

"Don't mind him" Susan said, "I'm Susan, what's your name?"

The dwarf sighed, "Trumpkin"

"Well, trumpkin, where are the other Narnians?"

And so, the redheaded dwarf led them the way. As they walked into the woods, trumpkin had the time to tell them what's been happening in Narnia after they left. He said that a group of pirates, the telmarines conquered Narnia. The telmarines drove off the Narnians or even killed them. Peter seemed outraged about it and swore that he would drive off every telmarine. And the Narnians haven't seen Aslan for so many years now.

Trumpkin just scoffed. He never really believed that aslan was real.

Not far from where they were striding, Caspian and Lisa were exploring with a few Narnians as their security. Lisa was picking some wild flowers to make them into a necklace while Caspian watched over her.

"What are you doing?" he asked, kneeling on one knee beside her.

Lisa was intertwining the stems of each flower together, making a big ring of multicolored flowers. She put it around his neck and grinned.

"It's a necklace" she shared and took a few more flowers to make another necklace.

Caspian looked at the flower necklace and couldn't help but, to smile. No one in the castle has ever made him feel special the way Lisa made him feel. When he was around her, he felt light and happy all the time. While watching what Lisa was doing, Caspian heard something; voices from afar. He sneaked away from Lisa's sight and decided to look for where the voices were coming from—to see if the enemy has found them. Lisa noticed Caspian leaving and she did the same, exploring the other side of the woods.

_I'm sure he wouldn't mind, _she thought.

As the Pevensie children were walking, Edmund also sneaked away from his siblings. He wanted to explore the woods on his own. And he was just getting annoyed with peter bossing them around. While walking, Edmund started to mutter things to himself on how annoying peter was. Just because he is the oldest doesn't mean he can boss them all. It made Edmund angry and wished that he was older too. In the middle of his walking, he suddenly heard the rustling of leaves. He quickly grabbed the hilt of his sword and looked for the direction of the sound. Little did he know that the sound was coming from Lisa, walking at the other side of the woods. She was walking curiously with a flower in her hand. The past few hours, she has been so fascinated with everything she was seeing. She couldn't believe that a beautiful place such as Narnia existed.

_Thwack!_

Lisa stopped on her tracks, nervous. She heard a twig break and it wasn't because of her. Was it a bear? Or worse, an unknown creature that eats people? Lisa tried not to squeal and quickly grabbed a big piece of wood from the ground. The sound came from behind the bushes and she tried her best to be brave and check it out. She clutched on the wood tightly as she approached the bush and checked it out. She raised the wood and the creature behind the bush lunged at her. Lisa squealed and fell back on the ground with the creature standing in front of her with a sword. She looked at the figure and realized that it was a guy and a familiar guy to be exact.

"E-Edmund?" Lisa said quite shocked.

Indeed it was Edmund, puzzled as she is. He put his sword away and gave Lisa a hand. As soon as she got up, Lisa quickly hugged Edmund to make sure he was not just a hallucination. Edmund on the other hand was surprised and just pat her on the back.

"Oh my goodness, Edmund! I can't explain how happy I am to see you!" she exclaimed almost in tears while hugging him so tight.

"W-what are you doing here?" he asked.

Lisa let go of him and sighed, "Well, there's this wardrobe that was delivered to our house and I went in. the next thing I know is that I'm here. I'm trying to look for a way to get back home when I met a few Narnians"

"You've seen Narnians?"

"Yes. Reepicheep and Trufflehunter have been so nice to me and they promised to help me find a way back home"

"Well, you look horrible at the moment" he said straight forwardly, looking at her soiled clothes and tussled hair.

Lisa looked at herself and could accept what Edmund said, "Well, I've had a few rough times. How did you get here then?"

"When we were in the train we saw the image of the ocean and we're suddenly on the seashore"

"It's so weird, isn't it?"

Edmund just smirked, "Not really. Come on, I'm pretty sure Lucy and the others would be thrilled to see you"

"They're also here?"

"Yeah, come on now"

In the mean time, Lucy was walking ahead of her siblings. She was actually curious on where aslan could be. All of a sudden, peter quickly pulled Lucy behind the bushes. The three of them hid as soon as they saw a Minotaur walking. The last time they were here in Narnia, the Minotaurs were alliance of the White Witch.

"Where is Trumpkin?" Lucy whispered, looking for their little friend. "And where's Edmund?"

Peter looked around and the little dwarf was gone and so was his younger brother, "Maybe some of the Minotaurs got them"

Peter took his sword out and quickly jumped out to attack the Minotaur. Unfortunately for peter, Caspian got out just in time to fight him back. The clueless Minotaur turned around and saw Caspian battling out with the young man. Before it got worse, Lisa and Edmund arrived just in time and saw what was happening.

"Peter, stop!" Edmund shouted and ran towards his brother.

Lisa did the same with Caspian, shouting, "Stop it!"

As soon as they got a hold of the two guys, peter recognized the girl pulling Caspian away.

He looked puzzled, "Lisa?"

Lucy and Susan went out from the bush and so did the other Narnians who just arrived. Trumpkin was one of them.

"I can't believe it, Lisa. It's really you!" Lucy said merrily and ran towards Lisa to hug her.

Lisa couldn't deny her happiness and was almost in tears to see such familiar faces, "Me too!"

Peter put his sword away and looked at Lisa, "How did you get here?"

"She has Dr. Kirke's wardrobe" Edmund explained.

"How long have you been here?" Susan asked.

"Uhm, since yesterday" Lisa said.

"Who's your barbaric friend here?" peter said mockingly, turning back to Caspian. "With the flower necklace"

Caspian looked insulted for being called barbaric and he couldn't believe that he was a friend of Lisa, "I am no barbarian. I'm a prince, Prince Caspian X. And you?"

Peter stood proudly again as he introduced himself to everyone, "I am High King Peter"

Trufflehunter quickly went forward and saw trumpkin with them.

"Trumpkin! You've done a great job getting the Kings and Queens of Old to us" he said.

Trumpkin just rolled his eyes and didn't seem to think of it as a big deal.

The Narnians and the other beasts bowed down in front of the four, including Caspian. Lisa, on the other hand, didn't seem to understand what was happening and just stood there.

She looked at the Pevensie, "Kings and queens?"

Lucy forced a smile on her face, "Oh, it's a long story"

"I bet it is"

Caspian led them back to the how while the Pevensie chattered with Lisa. For some reason, Caspian felt out of place once more. The Narnians and even Lisa turned their attention to the four siblings. As they were approaching the how, two lines of centaurs welcomed the comeback of the Kings and Queens of Old with their swords rose up. The Pevensie siblings walked in a horizontal line and headed inside the how first. Lisa stood beside Caspian and sighed.

"I swear I have no idea with everything that's happening" she confessed.

Caspian snickered and held her hand, "Come on"

When they were all in, they circled around the broken stone table. In that room, where aslan once sacrificed himself, was where they were going to discuss about Miraz. Some Narnians went in, carrying food for the kings and queens. Edmund was sitting in one corner, accompanied by Lisa and his sisters. Peter was standing, listening to every word Caspian and the Narnians were saying about Miraz's plan.

"We should attack them by surprise tonight" peter said proudly.

The Narnians looked a bit unsure and Caspian noticed. He got up and faced the young king.

"We're outnumbered" Caspian said, "We can't defeat them if we're this few and we're not ready"

"Do you have a better plan then?" peter asked, somewhat annoyed.

"Peter, lay off of him" Susan warned.

"Yeah, lay off Caspian" Lisa defended, "You might be the King or whatever here in Narnia but, that was a long time ago. Caspian knows the situation better than you do"

"But does he have a plan?" peter asked Lisa and Susan then looked at Caspian.

Caspian looked down, making a fist, "No"

"We'll follow my plan then"

Then peter left with a few Narnians to tell the others about the plan, leaving Caspian disappointed. Lisa, on the other hand, felt bad for her friend and was annoyed with the way peter acted.

"It's all right, Caspian" Lisa said softly.

Caspian smiled at her, "I'll just go ahead and see what I can do to help"

Lisa watched him leave and Susan quickly elbowed her with a curious look. Even Lucy was looking rather curious.

"How did you meet him?" Susan asked, intrigued.

"Well, a few telmarine soldiers tried to kill me and he found me in the woods and saved me" Lisa shared with a smile, "He's been my constant companion since the day I arrived here"

"He's quite a good looking prince now, isn't he?" Lucy teased and the three of them giggled.

Edmund, on the other hand, rolled his eyes and tried to concentrate on his food.


	7. The Battle at Miraz's Castle

Peter started ordering glenstorm and his men about the attack they would do tonight. Caspian, on the other hand, stood in one corner looking very troubled. He knew his uncle's men very well and they were quite aggressive. They would also enter the enemy's territory where they would really be outnumbered. But nonetheless, Caspian was still joining. He wanted to save his teacher, Dr. Cornelius, and end his uncle's rule once and for all to get his throne.

Lisa watched her friends get ready for the surprise attack. Susan was fixing her bow and arrows, Edmund was polishing his sword, and so was peter. But, she couldn't understand any of it at all. For her, they looked like a bunch of kids getting ready for a school play about King Arthur or something like that.

"Are you guys seriously going out there to fight?" Lisa finally asked them, with a hint of worry across her face.

Edmund just finished polishing his beautiful sword when he raised an eyebrow at Lisa, "Of course we are. Why, do you think this is some kind of joke?"

"Well, yeah! I mean, you're just a bunch of kids!"

"Then better wake up, Lisa. You're not in England anymore. Anything could happen in here. And do you think we, I, would be a king here if I couldn't fight?"

Lisa's ears turned red in anger because that's just how she was when she was angry. From the first time they met, she already knew that he had an obnoxious side.

She made a fist as she answered Edmund back, "So what if you're a king, you're still a jerk who is full of himself!"

The other Narnians gasped when they heard the way Lisa talked to King Edmund the Just. But for the Pevensie siblings, it was not a big deal and peter even smiled at their argument.

"Lisa, show some respect to the king!" Reepicheep ordered then faced Edmund, "Your majesty, do you want me to punish her?"

Edmund smirked, "It's all right, reepicheep. Let her say whatever she wants. After all, it wouldn't really matter. Maybe you should just go back to your skull collecting"

Furious about Edmund's attitude, Lisa walked away from the Pevensie siblings and looked for Caspian instead. Edmund was smirking when he saw his older sister's disapproving face.

"What?" he asked.

Susan sighed, "Be careful with the way you talk, especially to a girl. Lisa might be quite sensitive at times"

"Well, she should get used to it. She's not some princess I should respect" then he walked out to see the other Narnians who would be joining.

Lisa walked out of the how with her arms wrapped around herself. She had been walking around the how for a few minutes now looking for Caspian.

And jackpot.

She found him sitting by the entrance of the how, watching the beautiful sunset. Caspian, who was busy watching the sunset, realized that he had company and noticed that Lisa was not in a good mood.

"Are you all right?" he asked, concerned.

Lisa sighed and pretended that all was swell, "Yeah, I'm good. The sunset is pretty nice to look at. I've never seen it when I was in England"

"Why?"

"Hmm, I dunno. Maybe it's the fact that I don't go out of our house that much" Then she sighed as she faced Caspian, "Are you sure about what you're going to do?"

"To be honest, I'm not. If you are to ask my opinion, I'm not up for this surprise attack because I know that we wouldn't win"

"Then tell them—the Narnians would pretty sure go to your side"

"That is if the Kings and Queens of Narnia aren't here" he said then smiled at Lisa, "You seem to be worried"

"Of course I am! You're going back to that place where someone wants you dead. You could get hurt or worse—they could kill you!"

Honestly, Caspian was happy to hear that she cared for him. He faced Lisa fully and took both of her hands and squeezed it, "I have to do this, to prove that I could be Narnia's new king. I have to get what is rightfully mine by fighting"

In the middle of their conversation, Peter came out along with everyone who would participate in the surprise attack.

Caspian smiled back at Lisa as he stood up, "I'll see you later then"

"You better be" Lisa said.

Lisa stood beside Lucy, wishing all of them a good luck, well, except to Edmund. As soon as they left, the two young ones went back inside the how. The place wasn't completely deserted because some of the narnian children and women were resting. Lisa sat down on top of the broken stone table along with Lucy, sighing. Lucy was there earlier to witness the argument between her brother and Lisa and she could tell that Lisa was still mad about it.

"Don't worry, he's not always a jerk" Lucy shared.

Lisa looked at her and realized she was talking about Edmund, "But what is his deal? He's so obnoxious at times I just want to slap him"

"Well, I guess he's basing it from experience. I mean, we both are the youngest and he doesn't want to be treated like a kid anymore. Here in this world, he is shown with respect, a king"

"Don't I respect him? I was nice to him when we first met, aren't I?"

"Yes but, that's just how Edmund is. I guess it's also because of the fact that he misses our dad"

"Why, where is he?"

"He's a soldier too just like yours. We haven't heard anything from him yet and Edmund couldn't stop worrying. He actually wants to be a soldier so he could help out dad and for him to come home already"

Lisa suddenly felt guilty. The reason why Edmund was acting like a rebel was because he misses his dad. She felt so bad inside but at the same time, annoyed.

"But why does he have to be such a jerk to other people? I mean, it's not really my fault your dad left. My dad is also a soldier but, I'm not acting like a jerk"

Lucy patted Lisa's shoulder and smiled, "Don't worry, I'm pretty sure you'll get along someday"

Lisa sighed and lied back down on the hard stone table, staring at the earthly ceiling.

"Changing the subject, do you think they'll win?" Lisa muttered.

Lucy didn't really know and joined her in lying down, "All we have to do is have faith in them and Aslan"

"Aslan? Who is that?"

Lucy smiled as she tried to explain to her friend who aslan is, "Aslan is a talking lion. He is the king of beasts. He is always there when I needed his help. He's always been a guide to all of us"

"Where is he now?"

"I really don't know but, he sometimes visits me in my dreams"

"Do you think I'll someday see him?"

"Of course you will and I think he'll like to meet you too"

"Do you think he knows the reason why I got the wardrobe?"

Up to now, Lisa still didn't know who sent her the wardrobe and Lucy never got the chance to ask Dr. Kirke why he gave it away.

"Maybe. Aslan knows a lot of things and once you find out why you're here, you'll realize something you never imagined" Lucy shared.

"You think?" Lisa asked.

"I know so. This place is very mysterious and it could lead you to answers you've been searching for"

Lisa sighed and closed her eyes, "I do hope I get my questions answered"


	8. The Unsuccessful Battle

The battle took them all night that Lisa and Lucy fell asleep on the stone table as they kept on waiting. Lucy heard noises coming from outside which led her to wake up. She sat up lazily; rubbing her tired eyes and saw from the entrance of the how that it was already dawn. Quickly, she shrugged Lisa to wake up.

"What?" Lisa mumbled, weakly opening her eyes.

"I think they're here" Lucy said and stood up.

Just outside, welcoming the break of dawn, the Narnians were back from the battle. Lucy and Lisa ran to the entrance of the how with a few other Narnians eager to see their loved ones too. But judging by the appearances of the ones who went to battle, it wasn't successful. Some were severely injured, some a few scratches, and some never returned home. They were fewer now than when they left earlier. Lucy ran towards them with her cordial to see if someone needed her help right now. Caspian, who was now with Dr. Cornelius, still seemed to be down while Peter looked mad.

"You know, this is your entire fault!" Peter shouted at Caspian, pushing him.

Caspian couldn't take the way peter treated him anymore and pushed him back, "How is it my fault when you were the one who insisted with the surprise attack!"

"If you could have stick to the plan!"

Before a fight broke between them, Susan went came forward to control Caspian down and Lisa did the same with peter.

"Stop it! Fighting wouldn't resolve anything!" Lisa exclaimed.

The two guys looked at each other angrily and peter pushed Lisa's hands away and marched towards the how, bumping Caspian's shoulder.

"Maybe you should give him some time to cool off" Susan suggested as she patted Caspian on the back.

Caspian sighed and nodded, "I guess so"

Everybody else went back to the how, mending everyone who were badly injured. Caspian was also hurt, with blood gushing out from his arm. Lisa quickly made him sit down as she tore the end of her blouse to turn it into a bandage. Caspian watched as she mended his wounds.

"Thank you" Caspian said softly, looking at her beautiful face.

Instead of replying, Lisa hugged him tight which struck Caspian. He never saw it coming and he tried to hug her back.

"You idiot, it's a good thing nothing worse happened to you" Lisa said, holding back tears as she crushed Caspian with her hug.

Caspian chuckled and buried his face on her shoulder, "Thank you for even worrying about me"

"You don't need to thank me. Come to think of it, I should be the one thanking you. I owe you everything. I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for you. You saved my life"

"Yes, after you bit me" he teased.

Lisa felt embarrassed about the last part, "Well, I'm terribly sorry about that one"

Then, the old man with a white long beard beside Caspian smiled at Lisa then back to the prince.

"Is this the girl you were talking about?" the old man asked nicely.

Caspian nodded and introduced Lisa to him, "Alyssa, this is my teacher, Dr. Cornelius. Dr. Cornelius, this is Alyssa"

Lisa stretched out a hand and Dr. Cornelius kissed the back of it, "Nice to meet a charming lady such as you, my dear"

Lisa blushed, remembering the way her dad addresses her—_my dear_.

"You've talked about me to Dr. Cornelius?" Lisa asked Caspian curiously.

Dr. Cornelius chuckled as he saw the reaction of Caspian—blushing.

"The young prince, when he rescued me earlier, was eager to introduce me to a beautiful lady" he shared. "He told me that you made him feel special and accepted"

Lisa felt flattered and smiled at Caspian, "That's what friends are for, isn't it?"

In the middle of their discussion, Lucy appeared with her cordial. She poured a little on Caspian's wound to make the bleeding stop. While she was doing that, Lisa left to see some of the injured ones. She couldn't help but to feel bad about it. They were hurt physically and some spiritually. It was just like what was happening in England and the World War II. Lisa suddenly shivered, feeling colder than the usual.

_Atchoooo!_

Lisa was covering her mouth, feeling her head spinning after she sneezed.

"Do you have a cold?"

Lisa turned around and saw that it was Edmund, settling down. She wanted to answer him nicely but, she failed.

"Why do you even care?" Lisa answered irritably, wrapping her arms around her again.

Edmund was confused, thinking if he has done something now to offend her.

"Tsk, I am just trying to be nice" he muttered then noticed the clothes that she was wearing.

It was so damp, it had holes on it already and her blouse was basically torn.

"How long have you been wearing those clothes?" he asked curiously.

"Since the day I arrived home from the train station" Lisa shared and sneezed again.

"You'll definitely get a cold if you keep on wearing that"

"Well, where do you suppose can I find dry clothes? Obviously these creatures don't need clothes and there are no nearby markets here!"

Edmund rolled his eyes and didn't understand why girls have to be so talkative. He grabbed her by the wrist and dragged her out of the how.

"W-where are you taking me!" she exclaimed, squirming from Edmund's grip.

They've reached outside the how where the horses were staying with Lisa still squirming and whining. Edmund carried Lisa over a white horse without her approval. Lisa quickly held on to the horse to keep herself from falling. Edmund rides over the same horse, taking the horse's martingale and locking Lisa in place.

"Hold on tight" Edmund whispered.

He then instructed the horse to move now in a great speed and off to the woods.


	9. Edmund and Lisa

The white horse elegantly strode towards the quiet woods.

Edmund was busy looking at the way and would once in awhile look at glimpses of Lisa who was in front of him. She was strangely quiet and didn't seem to ask where they were going or some sort. Her long brown hair flicked on Edmund's face and he could smell its sweet lavender scent. After a few more striding of the white horse, Edmund pulled it to a halt. Slowly, the white horse began to stop and stood in one place. Edmund jumped down of the horse and looked at Lisa. She was still sitting so still, with her hands trembling.

She never liked horseback riding ever and it might be the only thing that frightened her.

"C-could you p-p-p-please put me d-down now" she stuttered.

Edmund smirked and gave her a hand down. Lisa took both of his hand as she went down and she slipped closer to Edmund's chest.

"You all right?" Edmund asked concerned.

Lisa looked up and their faces were so close to each other to the point that they were seeing each other's reflection in one another's eyes.

"Next time, warn me if you're taking me horseback riding" Lisa instructed and moved away from him.

As soon as she turned around, Lisa was struck by shock again. Edmund took her to the ruins of Cair Paravel, which Lisa seemed to show a lot of interest on. She looked at the old ruins, touching its remains and feeling its sandy texture.

"Has this place been catapulted?" she asked, observing the remains.

Edmund looked shocked to hear that, "How'd you come up with that idea?"

"Well, based from its markings"

"We don't really know but, I also thought that catapults must've ruined Cair Paravel"

"This place is amazing" Lisa muttered, looking at every remains.

Edmund overheard her and snorted, "You should've seen it when it was still standing"

Lisa looked at him, "You've been here before?"

"This is where we lived before"

"You lived here?"

"Well, it's a long story"

"I have all the time to listen to your story, _king_. This place intrigues me a lot"

"I'll tell you on the way, come on" Edmund said, opening a door that led to the treasure room with a flashlight in hand.

Lisa quickly went in, having a good mood for adventure and forgetting her anger towards the obnoxious guy. Edmund quickly followed behind because he didn't want to be the reason why Lisa would stumble down in the dark whilst he has the flashlight. When they reached the ground, Lisa was completely in awe with the statues and treasure chests. It felt like going inside a pyramid and seeing treasures for the first time.

"What is this place?" Lisa asked in amazement.

Edmund was looking through Susan's chest when he answered, "This is the treasure room"

"There are four chests, each one for you and your siblings?"

"Yeah"

"May I see yours then?"

Edmund looked confused, "Why mine? There are other three here"

"It would be rude of me to rummage on things while the owners aren't here" Lisa remarked, trying to talk some sense out of Edmund who was ransacking someone else's chest.

Edmund sighed and pointed at the chest at the far left. Lisa quickly went towards it and opened its heavy top. There weren't much special things to see but, everything looked amazing for Lisa— clothes, a gold crown, and a chess set made out of gold. Edmund finally found a decent dress from Susan's chest that would fit Lisa and approached her, who was staring at a gold piece from his chess set.

"My father loves chess a lot" she shared, looking at every detail of the chess piece.

"You can have it, if you like" Edmund said, not really caring if it missed one piece.

Lisa smiled, "Are you sure? I mean, it would miss one piece and you can't play it anymore"

"I'm pretty sure the other pieces are missing so you don't have to worry. You can keep that one as a souvenir"

"Thank you, Edmund" Lisa said then kept the gold chess piece inside of her pocket, "I really don't know how to play chess and I think it's a really boring game"

Edmund looked slightly offended with what she said.

He loves chess a lot.

"Hey, chess isn't boring" he defended, "If you want, I could teach you sometime and let you feel that it's fun and not boring"

"Really? I can't wait anymore" Lisa's eyes started to sparkle.

Edmund noticed how Lisa's eyes twinkled like stars. He suddenly looked away and tossed her the green velvet dress he took from his sister's chest.

"Here, you can use this" he said while he closed Susan's chest.

Lisa took it from him and looked at it. "It's beautiful. Are you sure I can use this?"

"Of course"

They went back up and headed to the seaside where Lisa could have a bath. Edmund didn't have a chance to turn around when Lisa suddenly took off her clothes. His cheeks reddened when he saw her in her ruffled floral underwear and he tried to look away nervously. Lisa, who didn't seem to mind that a guy was with her, sighed. For her, Edmund was a trustworthy guy so it was okay for her to see him in her underwear.

"Oh come on, think of it as a swimsuit" Lisa shared, taking off her shoes and feeling the sand between her toes.

Edmund gulped while still looking away, "S-sure"

Lisa stood in front of Edmund, who in return, gave her a confused look.

"You don't expect me to swim on my own, don't you?" she asked.

Edmund turned redder and annoyed, "Well why do I have to join you?"

"Please?" Lisa pleaded with a grin, "I don't know these waters as much as you do"

Edmund still felt nervous but, there was nothing wrong with swimming. After he sighed, he started to take off his blue tunic and brown pants leaving him with only a pair of white boxers. Lisa ran towards the water and squealed because it was really cold. Edmund shivered as he walked towards the wavy clear blue water. He wiped off the water on his face and saw Lisa being surrounded by water fairies.

"Don't worry, they're actually friendly" Edmund said as soon as he saw Lisa's worried face.

Lisa giggled as the fairies played with her hair and stuff.

Edmund was also actually having a good time also. It's been awhile since he swam and he forgot how good it felt to be in the water. He let himself float as he stared at the pink sky. The sun was almost rising and he suddenly got startled when Lisa's face appeared in front of him. Edmund stopped floating and stood with both feet, in front of Lisa.

"This place is really amazing, Edmund" Lisa said with a smile.

Edmund agreed, "Yes, this is the best place in the world"

"Don't you wish you could just stay here?"

"I do sometimes but then I remember my parents. I just wish they could come with us here"

"Well, maybe you can bring them here next time"

"Yeah, I guess so" he said.

"I wish I could stay here forever where I can leave all my problems behind" she said softly.

Edmund raised an eyebrow, "You, out of all people, have problems?"

"What's so surprising about that?"

"Well, Lucy used to tell us that you were like the perfect girl. You live in a mansion; you can have whatever you want. You don't look like the type of person who can ever have a problem"

"There's no person that is perfect, Edmund. She might see me that way but, that's all a lie. It's called pretending"

Edmund looked at her and noticed how sad she looked. She might not be frowning but, there was a hint of sadness underneath her small smile. And one thing that Edmund hated was being with sad people. To ease the awkward silence, Edmund suddenly splashed a lot of water onto Lisa.

Lisa gasped and splashed water back to him. They were actually having a wonderful time laughing, forgetting that they were annoyed at each other earlier.

"I think we better go back now or else the others might be worried" Lisa said, giggling.

Edmund smirked, "Oh, yeah"

The two of them swam back to shore with the feeling of being refreshed. Lisa squeezed her hair to get the excess water off. Lisa used her old blouse to dry herself and lent it to Edmund.

"You can use it as a towel" Lisa said with a grin.

Edmund looked at the blouse weirdly thinking it was inappropriate to use a woman's blouse as a towel. But there was no malice; he didn't even like her so it was okay. He dried his face with the blouse and he couldn't help but to think how sweet it smelled. Lisa has finally put on the green dress and felt comfortable wearing it. It felt so light and airy.

"What do you think?" she asked.

Edmund cleared his throat when he saw her, "It's all right"

She actually looked like a princess.

"Tsk, that's all you can say?" Lisa asked.

"Well, what do you want me to say?"

Lisa pouted her lips and looked away, "Nothing, let's just go"

Edmund rode the horse first and this time, Lisa was the one behind. She gently wrapped her arms around Edmund's waist as the horse walked towards the woods. The morning was quiet and the sun was finally rising. Lisa looked up at the beautiful sky and sighed.

"Say Edmund, where were you and your siblings headed when we went to the train? I mean, you're from London, aren't you?" she asked softly.

"We're staying at a family friend in Cambridge" Edmund said.

"Have you heard anything about your parents?"

"Well, mum said that she's all right and dad…well, he's fine. Before leaving for the train station this vacation, Peter and I actually saw him. I was very glad to see him. Lucy and Susan are actually mad that we just told them that by the time we're already here in Narnia" this time, Edmund's voice sounded very cheery.

Lisa smirked and leaned her head on Edmund's back, "Lucky you"

"Don't worry— I'm pretty sure you'll hear from your parents too"

Lisa deeply sighed, "With my mum, yes. But my dad…that's not going to happen"

"Why not?"

"Because he's dead"

Edmund suddenly halted the horse that Lisa almost fell backwards. He went down of the horse and faced Lisa with a confused look.

"But you told us he's with your mum in America" he argued.

Lisa shook her head, "See, I told you. I'm pretending. There are things that people don't know about me"

Edmund decided to walk and led the horse back to the how whilst listening to Lisa's untold story.

"It happened just months ago" Lisa started, playing with the horse's white hair. "It was during the summer vacation when a soldier came to our house. I was sitting by the stairs when mum excitedly answered the door, thinking that it was daddy, finished with his military service. Unfortunately, it was some other soldier. They talked for awhile and after that, mum broke to tears. The soldier tried comforting mum and that soldier looked at me with a devastated sorry look. I already knew for some reason that I'll never see daddy again go in to that door. That's also the reason why mum likes to spend some more time abroad, so she could forget about the death of my dad. This is actually my supposedly first time celebrating Christmas without him"

Edmund stopped and looked at her, unsure about what to say, "Look, I'm really sorry to hear that"

"It's okay" Lisa said with a grin. "I've already accepted the fact that life here on earth is temporary and that this life is only borrowed"

Edmund looked up to Lisa's bravery. Her father just dad a few months ago and yet, she did her best not to look affected by it. She wanted to be brave not only for her mum but, also for herself.


	10. Feast

The sun had fully risen and it shone over the nice greenery of the fields and the trees of the shuddering woods. Lisa was still sitting on top of the walking white horse while Edmund was walking silently beside it. Lisa had noticed and tried to break the awkward silence between them.

"I can't believe it" she suddenly said that took Edmund's attention.

"What?" he asked.

"That I have friends who are known as kings and queens"

"That's only here"

"But still, you're royalty. When I was still in the boarding school, your sister Lucy always looked up to me and I really don't know why. She had always told me that I was a modern princess. But here you are, true kings and queens"

"You don't have to be a real royalty to be one, you know. Maybe she sees you as a princess because of who you really are as a person. Maybe for her you're as beautiful and kind as a princess"

Edmund looked at her and realized she was staring at him with a smile. He suddenly felt conscious and annoyed that he began to blush.

"W-what?" he asked in annoyance.

"I misjudged you a lot, Edmund" she confessed.

"Huh?"

"My first impression was you were a jerk. Well, you still are, at times. But as I talk to you more often, I realize that you're not"

"That's because you didn't think of getting to know me first"

"I'm really sorry. I also thought I'd be closer to your brother, Peter. He is nice and we both like archaeology but, I don't like the way he bosses others around—especially the way he talked to Caspian"

"Hmm, do you fancy that Caspian?"

Lisa almost got out of balance when Edmund said that.

She giggled and her cheeks flushed, "I-it's not like that. I mean, he is very good looking and sweet but, he's just my friend. I like him for looking after me when I arrived here. He was patient with me and he never got mad at me when I bit him"

"You bit him?"

"Well, it's a long story"

"Well, I have plenty of time to listen to it"

When they both arrived back in Aslan's how, Lisa was acting as if nothing happened. Well, nothing really did happen but, it changed how Edmund saw Lisa now after learning about her father and her real personality. He actually felt guilty for all his teasing and being so obnoxious. Lisa looked around and saw Caspian eating breakfast with Dr. Cornelius.

"Good morning, Caspian!" Lisa said cheerfully as she took a sit beside him.

Caspian was ready to greet her too but when he looked at her, he was dazzled with the way she looked in her dress.

"Y-you look beautiful" Caspian stuttered and cannot take his eyes off of her.

Lisa blushed with his compliment and took a grape from his banana leaf, "Thank you, my prince"

_My prince_, Caspian thought and smiled with his heart pounding and Dr. Cornelius smirking.

While they were in one corner, Edmund joined his siblings on the other side and trufflehunter served him his banana leaf meal. He said thank you and began to eat. But Lucy, the most observant of all his siblings, noticed that he was quite weird today. He was more quiet than the usual.

"Where have you been?" she asked as she pulled off the meat from her chicken drumstick. "And why are you wet?"

Edmund slowly munched his food when he answered, "At Cair Paravel. If you don't mind Susan, I lent Lisa one of your dresses"

"It's all right" Susan answered, looking at Caspian across.

"Hmm, so you took Lisa out with you for a swim? You sly dog" peter teased, starting to lighten up after what had happened.

"I just took her because she needed dry clothes" Edmund defended.

But peter just grinned, "Why do you even care if she gets cold? I mean, you think she's weird right?"

"I'm just being nice, what's wrong with that?"

"Oh no, nothing's wrong with it. It's just weird that you actually think of her as a weird girl but you help her out. That's weird"

"Stop saying the word weird, it's annoying. And just mind your own business" Edmund said and faced his younger sibling, "Lucy, have you heard the story about her father?"

"What story?" she asked. "She tells a lot of stories of her father's adventures"

So Lisa hasn't mentioned the death of her father to anyone before except for Edmund. Maybe she didn't want anyone else to know about it and wanted it to remain that way.

"Nothing" Edmund said and continued eating.

Lisa just finished eating and when she got up to put her banana leaf away, a huge Minotaur bumped her. She lost balance and nearly slipped down on the ground. Luckily, someone caught her. She looked up and saw Edmund looking back at him with a mesmerizing smile.

"You could've hurt yourself there" Edmund said, smiling.

Lisa got up and felt kind of strange that Edmund actually smiled at her, "Uh yeah, thanks for helping me"

"It was nothing, really"

"Well, I was just going to put this banana leaf away"

"M-me too, I'll come with you"

"Uh, sure"

The two of them went out and threw their banana leaves away along with the other used ones.

Lisa looked back at Edmund and tucked her hair behind her ear, "I really enjoyed our trip to the ruins awhile ago. I hope we could go there again"

"Sure, just tell me when you want to go visit"

"All right. Well, I'll just go talk to Caspian now"

"Uh sure" Edmund said and watched her leave.

During the whole morning, Lisa felt weird around Edmund. He kept on smiling at her, saying hi, or practically being nice to her when they see each other that it freaked her out. It was not like him to be that nice, well, at least with how Lisa knew him. Not that it was a bad thing but, it was just something unusual. Getting annoyed already, Lisa finally decided to confront him. She found him in one of the tunnels, with a few other Narnians, polishing his sword once more. She walked straight towards him.

"Why are you suddenly being nice to me?" she asked curiously.

Edmund was startled when she suddenly spoke and nearly dropped his shiny sword. When he found out that it was only Lisa, he felt relieved and went back to cleaning his weapon.

"What, I can't be nice now?" he asked sarcastically.

Lisa knelt in front of him with pouted lips, "No, it's just awkward. You're suddenly being nice to me and you're not normally like that. Is it because of what I told you about my father?"

"I just thought that… I wasn't really treating you well"

"You were treating me just fine, Edmund" Lisa confessed.

Edmund looked confused, "Really? Do you mind changing lives with me, because I really hate Peter for him teasing or acting like a jerk towards me"

Lisa covered her mouth as she giggled, "I really don't like being annoyed but, you made me feel like a normal girl. You treated me naturally"

"You call that normal?" Edmund scoffed.

"Of course it is. You just said it yourself that peter teases or annoys you a lot. Isn't it normal for people to be like that?"

"Well…not really"

Lisa smiled and held Edmund's hand tight which startled him, "Just treat me like the way you did before. You don't have to be sorry about me. I've accepted the truth already"

"Does that mean we should always not get along?"

"I never said that. Just act real when we're together, okay?"

"We're friends then?"

Lisa smiled, "I've always treated you as a friend the first time I met you"


	11. Practice Makes Perfect

**Author's Note: Omo, thank you so much to those who are actually reading my fic^^ I was just so inspired by Skandar Amin Casper Keynes (And Ben Barnes) to write this^^. I'll try to update though there are times the site won't let me log in anyways, thank you for reading. Whatever comments are appreciated :D**

After losing to the telmarines, Peter thought that it was time for them to enhance their skills even more. If they want to defeat the telmarines and have the old Narnia back, they should do better than lose. Everyone who was physically fit to join an upcoming battle went out of the field to start practicing. Susan taught a few fauns and centaurs with archery and peter practiced his sword fighting skills along with Caspian, Edmund, and other Narnians. Caspian fought well with a few Minotaurs, better than he did before to be exact. So the Telmarines did teach him some few things that might come in handy. After he was done practicing, Caspian told them a job well done and gave them a time off first. As he was going to see the other's practicing, someone patted him on the back. Caspian turned around, surprised, to see that it was Lisa. And something was different with her hair today. The hair just near her forehead was in a side braid and the remaining hair was elegantly wavy.

Lisa felt conscious when she shyly smiled at Caspian, "Lucy played with my hair. Does it look weird?"

"Uh, no. You look…beautiful"

"Oh, uh, thank you. It is an honor for me to hear that coming from a prince" she said with a grin, "So; you're done practicing with the Minotaurs?"

Caspian didn't answer right away because he was just completely blown away with her beauty, "Oh yes, we are. We'll be practicing again later"

"Do you mind teaching me?"

"What, sword fighting?"

"Uh-huh. I've always been fascinated by the medieval period where everyone uses swords as a weapon"

"Why, don't they use swords in your place?"

"Hmm, not anymore"

It was now an era wherein guns and bombs ruled.

Caspian approached a Minotaur and borrowed its sword and handed it to Lisa. When Lisa carried it, she never thought it would be so heavy. It was here in Narnia she first held a sword and she felt so happy and honored to have a prince to teach her.

"Can you carry it?" Caspian asked.

Lisa raised the sword in front of her and smiled, "I think so"

"Then I can teach you already. Let's start with the basics"

And so he did. Caspian started with the basics— how to hold a sword and how to attack in different ways. Edmund was on the other side of the field, practicing with fauns. He defeated five fauns already and this could be his sixth win. In the middle of his duel, he saw a glimpse of Lisa on the other side. He saw Caspian teaching Lisa on how to hold a sword and he was getting very close to her. His hand was wrapped around Lisa's hand and Lisa seemed to be having fun too—laughing even. Because Edmund's mind was too preoccupied, the faun attacked Edmund and he fell to the ground, startled. Peter saw that Edmund, one of the greatest sword fighters there is in Narnia, was defeated.

It was unlikely of him.

The faun helped Edmund up and the young king patted the faun on the shoulder.

"Very good and keep it up" Edmund said and turned around to go back inside the how.

Edmund walked away in a sort of a bad mood. It wasn't because he was defeated but, because of something else that was quite irrelevant. It was even related to their exercise.

"Ed!"

Edmund was on his way back to the how when he turned around and saw his brother, Peter, running after him. He stopped on his tracks and looked at his older brother for awhile, standing under the bright sunny sky.

"What's up with you, Ed? Your mind seems to doze off somewhere else" peter pointed out.

Edmund gulped and tried to think of a lie to tell, "It's nothing. It's just the heat of the sun, that's all"

"Really?" peter asked with his arms on his waist and looked at Caspian and Lisa who were laughing on the other side of the field, "Or is it something else that's bothering you"

"Nothing is bothering me, okay?" Edmund said, almost pissed off when he left his brother alone.

Inside the how Lucy was sitting over the stone table, reading a book she has brought from England, when she saw Edmund come in a very bad mood. She closed the book she was reading and sighed at the sight of her brother.

"Did you and Peter have fight again?" she asked.

Edmund put his sword belt and sword on top of the stone table and sat beside his sister, "No"

"Then what's the matter then? You've been weird this couple of days"

"Why do you have to observe everything?" Edmund asked annoyed.

Lucy sneered at her annoying "older and much mature" brother, "Because it obviously shows"

"This is nothing. I'm just confused with a lot of things happening around us"

"You're right. Without Aslan, we're just lost"

"Yeah, I guess you're right"

"Anyways, have you seen Lisa's new hairdo?"

"Oh yeah, the braided thing"

Lucy nodded proudly, "I did it. She really has beautiful hair and I love playing with it"

Edmund snorted and looked away from her, "Like I care about her hair"

"Shut up. She told me that she wanted to show it off to you, her new hairstyle"

Edmund looked at her curiously, "Oh really? Then why is she with Caspian then? She haven't approached me yet"

"Well, maybe she didn't saw you but, she really wanted to show it off to you because she said you're a very good critic. I think she told that out of sarcasm"

"Shut up"

"What is she doing outside with Caspian?"

"Caspian is teaching her how to use a sword"

Lucy's eyes widened, "Really? I think they look together, don't you think?"

Edmund stared at her with a poker face, "You seriously have to spend some time away from Susan. She's brainwashing you with all those girly stuff"

"That's because I'm a girl too"

"Yeah and it's pretty annoying"


	12. Another Bonding

When night arrived, everyone went back inside the how for dinner. Some of the centaurs finished fishing and picking up some fruits and nuts then got it all ready for everyone. Everyone seemed to be tired with all the practice and they can't wait for dinner even though it didn't seem enough. While waiting for the food to be served, Lisa was talking to Caspian, Peter, Susan, and Lucy. Fortunately, Peter and Caspian have settled a truce already and were actually laughing together. Susan and Lucy were excitedly sharing embarrassing moments of peter which were really funny. Lisa was also laughing out loud and it has been awhile since she did. She only laughed this way when her father was still around.

Hours later, the Narnians served the humans. Each of them got another long banana leaf as a plate with two pieces of grilled fish, blueberries, and walnuts. When they started to eat, Lisa saw Edmund go out of the how quietly without anyone else noticing.

"Is Edmund okay?" Lisa asked, nibbling on a small piece of fish.

Susan looked around for Edmund then to Lisa, "Hmm, he's not here. He's acting pretty weird, isn't he?"

"Very much"

"Maybe he's going through puberty" Peter joked.

Caspian, Susan, and Lucy couldn't help their selves and snickered.

Lisa merely showed a smile.

"I'll go see if he's all right" Lisa said and stood up, bringing her food with her.

Peter smiled when Lisa left. He was actually excited for his brother to meet a girl he would like.

Just outside the how, Edmund was sitting all alone. The field where they were practicing earlier was very dark and only the silhouettes of the swaying trees and cone shaped mountains could be seen. The dark sky was filled with beautiful sparkling stars like diamonds. Edmund could hear the faint noise of cheers coming from the how but, heard the chirping of crickets mostly. He looked up at the starry sky in a slouchy way when everything turned dark.

Someone had covered his eyes.

Edmund sighed and didn't seem to be in the mood for jokes, "Peter, I don't have time to joke around"

Almost instantly, Edmund could see again. He turned around and didn't see peter but, Lisa. She looked annoyed with her arms folded around her chest.

"How dare you, I don't have a man's hands!" Lisa argued.

Edmund tried to smile and looked back at the stars, "I was just teasing"

But he still looked serious.

Lisa sat beside him and put her banana leaf on her lap and also watched the stars.

"Why are you here outside?" Lisa asked.

Edmund sighed, "Just to think"

"What are you thinking? About what happened during the battle?"

"No, it's not that. It's something else which isn't related to it"

"Well, do you want to talk about it?"

"No"

"Okay" Lisa said, respecting his privacy, "Well, I brought you some food"

Edmund looked at the food she brought and smirked, "You didn't have to. I could eat later"

"But you'll eat alone and it's very boring to eat alone you know. So I decided to join you here outside" then Lisa took a small piece of blueberry, "Say ah"

Edmund's eyes crossed when he looked at the small fruit raised between his eyes. He slowly opened his mouth and Lisa popped it into his mouth and grinned. She took a small piece for herself too.

"Anyways, I have a new hairstyle" Lisa boasted with a grin.

Edmund looked at her braid and smirked, "Yeah, I've noticed"

"I've been dying to show it to you but, you were too busy practicing"

"Oh, sorry"

"But now that you're not busy, I could ask you for your criticism"

Edmund smiled, "You look beautiful"

On the other hand, Lisa didn't seem to be amused, "Edmund, I told you that you don't have to be nice to me. Be true to yourself and me"

"But it's true, I think you look really beautiful—like a princess"

"Oh, well, thank you. I bet it's hard for you to tell the truth, that I'm beautiful" Lisa said with a grin.

Then the two of them became quiet.

"Would you get mad if I asked you a few things?" Edmund asked with a very soft voice.

Lisa looked at the sky as if she was thinking, "It depends with what questions you have. If it's about school, it's quite all right. If it's about my future, well, I probably can't answer that. If it's about boys, I don't know what to say either"

"How about something connected to your dad?" Edmund actually thought that Lisa would burst into tears and run back inside the how but, she didn't.

Lisa actually smiled.

"Sure, what do you want to know about him?" she said, nibbling on another piece of blueberry.

"Well, how he became a soldier"

"Oh, that. Well, he's been a soldier even before he met my mum. At the age of seventeen, he already joined"

"Seventeen? Does that mean that he changed his age?"

"Yeah, he did. He wanted to become a soldier badly so he could be with his dad, who was then the general. And so, he got in. Mum said that grandpa was furious when he found out but, dad still didn't want to leave. Grandpa allowed him to stay. While he was on duty patrolling London then, he met my mum in an ice cream parlor. Dad was so head over heels for mum that he constantly patrolled near that ice cream parlor. By the time he was twenty one, he asked my mum to marry him. They wed blah blah blah. They had me when he was already twenty nine and mum was twenty seven. When I was already two years old, mum wanted dad to leave the army because it was already getting dangerous. But dad refused. He said that it was a big honor to serve the country and that he wanted me to see him as a hero. And so he continued. Every vacation, he'll be home to be with us. He'll also make some time for my birthday. But this year, it was just horrible. He didn't come back home and mum was very devastated. He was her one and only love. Grandpa actually saw how my daddy died and because of it, he already retired"

Edmund was astonished with her father's story. For some reason, he pictures himself just like him. He wanted to be in the army to be with his dad also.

"Your dad is very brave…and so are you" Edmund muttered.

Lisa looked at him with an eager smile, "You think I'm brave?"

"Well, yeah. I mean, you've handled the lost of your dad pretty cool and you never showed your weaker side"

"That's called pretending"

"But you know, you don't have to pretend"

"I know but, I have to. For my mum's sake" Lisa sighed and looked at her food, "I miss my dad a lot though. I considered him as my best friend. He understood me more than mum"

"Really?"

"Yeah. For my mum, the antiques my dad collected are just rubbish. But for me and my dad, they're like treasures that hold the history's secret. I bet he'll like you if he ever met you since you're into history and chess too"

"I think so too"

"Too bad he died early" then Lisa patted Edmund with a smile, "You guys are lucky to still have your parents. So, always cherish your moments with them while they're still around"

"I will"

Lisa then took out the letter her mum gave her days ago then handed it to Edmund, "My mum wants me to celebrate Christmas with her in America. Personally, I don't want to go. I hate riding planes or ships. What do you think I should do?"

And they became quiet again. Edmund didn't really know what to say to her question.

Lisa yawned and got up.

"I think I'll sleep now" Lisa said with droopy eyes.

She was always tired with the routine Narnians did—practice, go out for battle, look for hiding places, etc.

Edmund smiled at her, "Goodnight"

"Yeah"

As Lisa was almost at the entrance of the how, Edmund quickly turned around and called her, "Hey Lisa"

Lisa turned around curiously, "Hmm?"

"I think… you should stay in England for Christmas" he said softly without looking at her.

It made Lisa grinned and nodded, "Yeah, I thought so too. We should bond again soon?"

"Yeah, soon"


	13. Confessions

The next day, the three older Pevensie went out of the how along with Caspian, Trufflehunter, and Reepicheep. They went to the woods to see anything that could help them attack the telmarines like finding other Narnians, weapons, or shortcuts. They all decided to split in pairs— Susan and Peter, Edmund and Caspian and, Trufflehunter and Reepicheep. That morning, Edmund was still quite feeling sleepy. He actually hasn't had enough sleep last night because he was thinking of a lot of things.

Things that were troubling him and driving him crazy.

He didn't even know what he was supposed to look for in the woods. He just followed Caspian's track behind, yawning from time to time. Caspian looked left and right as if something was bothering him. Well, something was bothering him but, it was not the telmarines.

"Hey Edmund, what can you say about Alyssa?" Caspian asked, playing with a twig he picked.

Edmund just finished yawning when he looked at the telmarine prince, "Lisa? What can I say about her?"

"I mean, you know, her personality, interests. That sort"

"Well, we never talked when we were still in England. I just got the chance to talk to her here"

"Well, what have you known about here since you people came here?"

"Hmm, she's a unique girl" Edmund said as he walked, "She likes anything related to history and she likes to go on adventures"

Caspian smiled then faced Edmund, "Do you think we have anything in common?"

"Not sure but, her dad is dead and so is yours"

Caspian looked at Edmund, shocked, "Her father is dead?"

Edmund gasped and didn't realize that he spilled out Lisa's secret, "Don't you dare tell anyone about this, not even to Lisa. It was supposed to be a secret and she's going to kill me if she finds out I told someone else. Why are you even asking so things about her?"

Caspian was quiet for a moment, not sure how to tell Edmund how he was feeling. But, he has to try.

"I…I think I'm growing feelings for her" he finally confessed.

Edmund's eyes almost popped out when he heard the unexpected confession. It actually infuriated him deep inside and his cheeks started to heat up.

"Y-you can't be serious! I mean, you're years older than her" Edmund pointed out.

Caspian smirked at him, "Age doesn't really matter when it comes to love now, does it? Or maybe because you like her too?"

"I do not!"

"Then nothing is wrong with it then"

Edmund looked away, making a fist out of his hands. They continued to walk and Caspian couldn't stop smiling and imagining Lisa's face. For him, Lisa was the princess he was dreaming of marrying.

"Who wouldn't fall in love with Alyssa? I mean, she's beautiful, funny, and witty. For some reason, I was attracted to her from the first time I met her in the woods" Caspian shared.

But Edmund didn't seem to be listening or rather—he was playing deaf. He didn't want to hear Caspian talking so much about Lisa filled with admiration.

It somehow annoyed him.

Hours and hours of roaming the woods, Caspian kept on talking about Lisa. He talked about the times they spent together, laughing and the sort. Edmund, on the other hand, hated it and even made faces behind Caspian.

"Say Edmund, do you think I should confess to her?" he asked and looked at Edmund.

Edmund suddenly stopped on his tracks, looking half annoyed and half clueless, "I-I don't know. But, don't you think you're going too fast? I mean, you might shock her"

"I've also thought about that but remember she's from your world. Anytime, you, your siblings, and Lisa would be back in your own world. So while I still have the time and the courage, I would want to let her know what I feel about her"

Edmund sighed, thinking that he was unable to stop Caspian with his plan of confessing, "Do whatever you please, as if I care"

Caspian smiled and patted him on the shoulder, "I take that as a yes"


End file.
